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Minutes 11-09-05 MINUTES OF THE COMMUNITY RELATIONS BOARD MEETING HELD IN THE COMMISSION CHAMBERS, CITY HALL, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA, ON WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 9,2005 AT 7:00 P.M. Present: Brian Miller, Chair Blanche Hearst-Girtman, Vice Chair Alfred Levy Eddie Mitchell Joyce Mura Gregg Orenstein Phyllis Stern Brenda Lee Williams Kurt Godfrey, Alternate Diane Pacheco, Alternate Thelma Lyons, Neighborhood Specialist Liaison Deputy Fire Chief James Ness Absent: Stanley Sorgman I. Pledge of Allegiance Chair Miller called the meeting to order at 7:04 p.m. Deputy Chief James Ness led the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag. II. Roll Call Chair Miller declared a quorum was present. Stanley Sorgman was the only board member absent. III. Recognition of Visitors · Presentation by Deputy Fire Chief James Ness on the CERT (Citizens Emergency Response Team) Program Chair Miller said that he was able to arrange for Deputy Fire Chief Ness to present the CERT Program to the board through Joyce Mura, a board member who is also a CERT volunteer. When this presentation was arranged, no one envisioned a major hurricane for the Boynton Beach area, so this was a great time to learn about the program. Chair Miller indicated the program should have representation from every part of the City and the CRB pledged to promote the program and invite community participation. Deputy Chief James Ness, Boynton Beach Fire Department, gave a presentation about the CERTS program. He appreciated the opportunity to get the word out about the program whenever he could. The recent hurricanes had rekindled interest in the community about the program. The reality was that it was not IF a storm was going to hit, but WHEN. He had been in the City 30 years and had never seen a storm with the power of Hurricane Wilma. The amount of damage was significant, but compared to Hurricane Andrew, the City was lucky. Meeting Minutes Community Relations Board Boynton Beach, Florida November 9, 2005 The CERT program started in Japan in response to the earthquakes. They found resources after a major earthquake were stretched to the limit and they discovered they could not meet the needs of all the citizens. After a major earthquake, there could be thousands of people displaced and/or injured with only a limited number of rescuers in a position to help. Japan said it would train people how to become First Responders. They would teach them how to do basic First Aid, how to put out small fires, how to do search and rescue. The slogan of CERT is: "Neighbors Helping Neighbors." They teach the citizens how to help themselves and their neighbors until Fire Rescue is able to get on the scene. California saw what happened in Japan and with their earthquake history, took the lead in this country and started the program. Soon, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) took the lead on the federal level and came up with a structured CERT program, which is the one taught at Boynton Beach. The Fire Department started out many years ago with a Citizens Fire Academy prior to the CERT program. Delray Beach, Boca Raton, and West Palm Beach have been doing CERT for 8 or 9 years and Boynton Beach for 3 to 4 years. The program is completely funded by grant money. The Fire Department goes out each year to solicit funds from the County and they are able to put on two classes with the funds. The whole purpose of the program is to generate an army of volunteers who are self-activated and who will take care of themselves and others before, during and after a major emergency. There are some 70K people in Boynton Beach. If a Hurricane Andrew type disaster occurred, the most that the Fire Department could muster in the way of personnel would be SO to 60 people. Three thousand homes might be damaged with people trapped in them. There could be fires. When a storm occurs, for example, a CERT volunteer goes outside after the storm and checks on his or her neighbors, looks for damages, and gives First Aid if necessary. The CERT volunteer then reports back to the Fire Department, acting as an arm of the Fire Rescue Department. The CERT volunteers are able to give Fire Rescue reports from the field very quickly following an emergency event. After a hurricane, for example, most people did not have power or telephones. The CERT volunteers are able to be the eyes and ears of the Fire Department out in the community. CERT volunteers are given portable radios and after the storm, they report on the status of their neighborhoods. This information comes in more quickly than the Police and Fire are able to get people out on the roads. The CERT team members put a sticker on their car and drive up and down the streets to do damage assessments. They make lists of roofs that are damaged, where power lines are down, where there is flooding, and where trees are blocking the roads. The condition of the City, as noted by the CERT volunteers, is made available immediately to the Emergency Operations Center. Deputy Chief Ness indicated there were about 100 plus members at present. Some areas had taken the program and expanded on it, especially Leisureville. Leisureville got together with its members and formed some organizations within the community. They purchased equipment such as backboards, bandages, and some radios for communicating amongst themselves, Motivating people to get involved is difficult. People seem to feel if they wait long enough, government will come to take care of them. That is true, but it could take several days to happen. 2 Meeting Minutes Community Relations Board Boynton Beach, Florida November 9,2005 Some of the topics in the curriculum are Disaster Preparation, Search and Rescue, Fire Suppression, Medical, Disaster Psychology, Terrorism, and Communication. Disaster Preparation - The importance of self-preparation is key. If a volunteer's house were in disorder with no food, water, or shutters, the CERT volunteer would not be able to help anyone. Search and Rescue - If the CERT volunteer sees a house is damaged and knows the resident is out of town, they might check the house and report to the Fire Department. This would allow the Fire Department to move on to someone else's house. No one is put in harm's way through the program. Not every person is going to be able to engage in search and rescue. The volunteers range in age from 18 to 89. Some people will just take notes for someone else or start a CERT organization in their community. They would be doing a great service that way. Applicants for the program need to be 18 years of age and live in the City of Boynton Beach. Fire Suppression - The volunteers are taught how to operate a fire extinguisher. It seems that most people have them but have never used them. The Fire Department will train people how to use fire extinguishers to put out a fire. This is live, hands-on experience. Medical - There are two sessions on medical issues including triage, which is a sorting out of patients according to a particular protocol. In a disaster, somebody in cardiac arrest might have to be passed over in favor of someone the volunteer could actually save. The most good has to be done for the most people. Volunteers are taught how to stop bleeding and this can be very useful during an emergency. Volunteers do not have to know CPR. Disaster PSYChology - A Rabbi teaches this and she was in Israel during the wars in the 1960s. She saw a lot of suffering and had a great perspective. She is also the Chaplain for the Delray Beach Fire Rescue Department so she knows the area of public safety. Terrorism - What can you expect if there were a terror attack. CERT is not just for hurricanes. It could be a tornado, terrorist attack, and some other emergency. Years ago, a train car hit the Tropicgas installation and the mushroom cloud could be seen from Delray Beach. Communication - Volunteers are taught how to operate a portable radio and communicate with the Fire Rescue Department. The class lasts about eight weeks. After the class a radio drill is given. About a month after the class, a disaster drill is done. The City has an eight-acre site where they teach several modules of the class, one of which is called Cribbing. This is where someone is trapped under some lumber and the volunteers are taught how to get that lumber off of them using whatever tools are available. The volunteers will also be taught how to put out fires. Some search and rescue training is provided also. A triage area is set up and the volunteers actually work with Fire Rescue. There are young kids dressed up with bleeding and so forth. If a patient needs to go to the hospital, the volunteer will turn them over to the Fire Rescue and give them a report. The classes are taught by Firefighters. Some CERT team members got additional training and now assist in the training. Delray Beach puts on a lot of classes where the CERT team members actually taken the lead to teach the classes. He would like to see that happen in Boynton Beach one day. 3 Meeting Minutes Community Relations Board Boynton Beach, Florida November 9,2005 The Fire Rescue Department in Boynton Beach is proud of the fact that it works hand-in-hand with the volunteers, instead of the arms-length approach maintained in other areas. Part of the program is a Ride-Along program. The volunteer rides with Fire Rescue and the volunteers get to know the Fire Rescue personnel. The program is taken seriously and the volunteers are treated seriously. The volunteers do a service for the Fire Rescue Department and the community. The CERT volunteers also help in other ways. Recently, they manned a booth at an Expo in WalMart. CERT members also manned the Blue Roof program at City Hall in the Mall. A request came in recently for CERT volunteers to help with the distribution of ice and water. Some volunteers are working with Public Works as monitors to make sure proper records are kept on the current debris removal effort. There are usually one or two refresher drills in the summer. Once involved, the Fire Rescue Department wants to keep the volunteers interested and their skills and confidence up. Another important aspect of the program is that it belongs to the volunteers. The Fire Rescue Department teaches the volunteers. but expects the volunteers to have the initiative to activate themselves. The Fire Rescue Department is there to support the volunteers, but the program belongs to the public. Deputy Chief Ness spoke of a number of organizations throughout the community at present: High Point, Pine Point, Hunters Run, Leisureville, Village Royale on the Green, one volunteer in Nautica, and others. There was no central coordination within the City, however. Delray Beach has a committee comprised of citizens that have gotten together to act as liaison between the CERT program, the Fire Department and the various programs in the community. It is their job to get with the groups to find out what their needs are and to interact with homeowner associations. He thought a subcommittee from this group might take the challenge to try to act as a facilitator to work within the community - to get the word out to recruit new volunteers and to try to organize some of the groups that exist at present. An organization is needed to bring them together. The last training class scheduled for spring of 2005 had to be cancelled when only five people signed up for it. In the class being taught now, there are almost 30 people. Storms have a way of bringing out the interest in people. Deputy Chief Ness was confident if the program ere promoted in the community, the volunteer base would grow. Q It A from Board Ms. Williams asked how long the class was and where it was held. Deputy Chief Ness stated the class was eight weeks in duration and it usually met on Wednesday evening from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at Fire Station #3 on Miner Road and North Congress Avenue. One session is held in the Fall and one in the Spring. It might be POSSible to get additional funding for a third class. Mr. Godfrey asked how many members were active in CERT. Deputy Chief Ness stated of some 100 volunteers, probably 50 were active. Deputy Chief Ness distributed applications and printed material about the program. The applications would be for the class in February, since the current class was already full. If a 4 Meeting Minutes Community Relations Board Boynton Beach, Florida November 9,2005 person signed up for the program, it was important to attend all the sessions. Each module is important. Deputy Chief Ness commented a number of developments in the City are not represented at all. For example, the Heart of Boynton does not have any CERT representation at present. Vice Chair Hearst-Girtman suggested flexibility on the time of the meetings. Many people in the Heart of Boynton area are working people who work until 6:00 p.m. and then have to go home or make dinner. Deputy Chief Ness was willing to entertain any kind of schedule that would make it possible for residents to attend a class. It could be taught on Saturday, for example. The evening classes generally run from 2 to 3 hours in length. Vice Chair Hearst-Girtman also suggested any City organizations wanting help from Heart of Boynton residents should approach them through the pastors of the local churches. This venue would be the most productive means of communicating the need for volunteers for this program. She felt the pastors would be happy to spread the word about the program. Deputy Chief Ness indicated he had written to all the churches in the City already, and Vice Chair Hearst-Girtman stated a personal visit would be very helpful instead of a letter. Ms. Williams suggested the possibility of a class on a Saturday would be a good thing to mention in a personal visit or a letter. Chair Miller asked the board how they felt about participating in a subcommittee to work citywide with Deputy Chief Ness to promote and expand the CERT program. Motion Ms. Mura moved to have a subcommittee to promote CERT. Vice Chair Hearst-Girtman seconded the motion that passed unanimously. Ms. Mura offered to be on the subcommittee along with Phyllis Stern and Alfred Levy. It was thought Stan Sorgman would also want to be on it. IV. Approval of Minutes of October 12, 2005 Motion Vice Chair Hearst-Girtman moved to approve the minutes of the October 12, 2005 meeting. Ms. Williams seconded the motion that passed unanimously. V. Agenda Approval Motion Vice Chair Hearst-Girtman moved to approve the agenda as presented. Ms. Williams seconded the motion that passed unanimously. VI. Correspondence and Announcements Ms. Stern announced that she, Mr. Levy and Mr. Orenstein had attended the Police Academy training program. Due to the hurricane, the program was, unfortunately, cancelled. VII. Old Business A) Pride in Boynton Beach (Discussed out of Order) 5 Meeting Minutes Community Relations Board Boynton Beach, Florida November 9, 2005 1) Review Community Projects suggested by Ms. Phyllis Stern and Mr. Alfred Levy. Ms. Stern and Mr. Levy had distributed a list of potential community projects to the board members the previous month. Mr. Levy indicated these were suggestions. Their intent was to make the board proactive instead of reactive. The board had commented at times about the lack of awareness of what the other boards were doing, especially the other "people" boards: Advisory Board on Children & Youth and the Education Advisory Board. There was a feeling that this communication should be regenerated. Mr. Mitchell commented the three boards had combined meetings in the past and it had been very informative. Mr. Levy believed the board should attend the other board meetings and bring back the information to this board to discuss. Mr. Levy offered to attend the City Commission meeting, but felt that board members attending other meetings should have identification badges first. Ms. Stern said that Officer Huntington of the Police Department had made identification badges for each of the Citizens Police Academy members in about 15 minutes and probably be glad to do the same for this board. Ms. Stern offered to attend the meetings of the Advisory Board on Children & Youth. The board agreed to consider the list of projects submitted by Ms. Stern and Mr. Levy and come to the next meeting prepared to choose a topic of interest and a board with which they would interact. The Recording Secretary was asked to submit a City meeting calendar with the minutes so members could consult their schedules and make a better decision. Ms. Stern read from the Community Relations brochure, "The Community Relations Board, in general, is to be used as a forum for grievances for all citizens of the City. The Board should make timely recommendations to the City Commission concerning such grievances or complaints. The board acts in an advisory capacity to the City Commission on issues of broad, citywide concern. It may suggest specific programs, gUidelines or outlines to address these identifiable problems. Programs are suggested to promote harmony and communication between all the residents and citizens and to sponsor activities within the community, which will also serve to promote such harmony and communication. Over the years, the board has initiated many diversified projects and would continue to add more projects as it targets appropriate concerns. " Ms. Stern felt this had not been read recently to know where their goals and energies should be directed. Ms. Girtman felt the goals and objectives had not been acted upon in a long time. Ms. Stern was simply reminding the board of its written mandates and she hoped that in 2006, they could be addressed more efficiently. Mr. Mitchell echoed the earlier remark of Mr. Levy that the Community Redevelopment Agency was a group with which the board should become familiar. It was the major board in the City working for the Heart of Boynton area and he felt there should be CRB representation at its meetings. VIII. New Business A) Boynton Beach High School Update (Heard out of Order) Ms. Williams reported she had spoken with the Boynton Beach High School principal, Kathleen Perry, and invited her to the December meeting of the Community Relations Board. Since there was not going to be a December meeting, Ms. Williams would invite Ms. Perry to the January meeting. Ms. Williams explained the board discussed at its previous meeting that it wanted to 6 Meeting Minutes Community Relations Board Boynton Beach, Florida November 9, 2005 offer its services to Ms. Perry to help raise the school's rating and support the children by volunteering or tutoring to improve achievement on the FCAT test. They were also open to any other suggestions for ways in which the CRB could support the school. She commented Ms. Perry had spoken to Ms. Farace at the Library about the Read Boynton program in which Ms. Perry's predecessor had participated. A discussion ensued in which it was decided the CRB should invite a representative of the EAB to the January meeting. Chair Miller offered to contact the Chair of the Education Advisory Board, Ms. Jean Cairo. B) Holiday Break A discussion ensued about not having a meeting in December due to holiday commitments on the part of the members. Motion Mr. Miller moved to eliminate the December meeting. Vice Chair Hearst-Girtman seconded the motion that passed unanimously. IX. Adjournment There being no further business before the board, the meeting was duly adjourned at 8:09 p.m. Respectfully submitted, ~O~ {;~/r Susan Collins Recording Secretary (111505) 7